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You need protein for the growth and repair of muscles, organ tissue and DNA, production of white blood cells, enzymes and hormones. Protein is rich in B vitamins which are good for the nervous system and helps us to cope with stress and reduce anxiety. Signs of deficiency include anxiety and skin problems. Vegans need to eat a variety of plant foods to get all the required amino acids that the body needs. As a qualified Nutritional Therapist, I have a good knowledge of the best vegan sources of protein.

Here are the best vegan sources of protein:

The following foods are complete proteins containing all the essential amino acids.

Tofu – is made from soy bean mashed into a block. It is a great source of protein. However I would not recommend eating a lot of tofu as it contains phytooestrogens which mimic the hormone oestrogen. It can mess with your hormones, especially if you are a man. It is popularly believed that they eat a lot of tofu in the East, but actually they eat mainly fermented soy beans such as tempeh, miso and natto.

Quinoa – is a seed that is a complete protein containing all 9 amino acids. It is quick to cook in around 10 minutes. You can use it in place of a grain with a main meal or in a salad.

Amaranth – is also a complete protein. It is sweet and makes a tasty amaranth porridge in place of the usual oat porridge for breakfast.

Buckwheat – is a complete protein as well. It goes well in a main meal with carrots, brocolli and a veggie burger.

Hemp seeds – You can use hemp in the form of hemp protein powder. It is great added to smoothies or on your porridge for breakfast. It is one of the best sources of vegan protein as it is a complete protein.

Chia seeds – you can sprinkle chia seeds on your breakfast porridge, add to smoothies or make chia pudding for a tasty dessert.

Other Good Sources of Protein

The following foods are not complete proteins and may have one essential amino acid missing. Therefore you need to eat these proteins with other plant-based foods such as chickpeas, nuts, seeds and beans.

Lentils – are a good source of protein. There is 20g of protein in 75g of lentils, which is 1 or your 2-3 daily portions of protein. It is delicious in a red lentil dhal. However they are not a complete protein so you need to eat them with rice or bread to get all the essential amino acids.

Almonds – these contain the high amount of protein of any of the nuts. You can have a handful of almonds as a snack, add them to cereal, oat flapjacks or in smoothies. You can also grind them up with other nuts to make a great base for raw vegan desserts such as raw mango cheesecake.

Chickpeas – you can add chickpeas to curries for extra protein or make hummus which can be used as a dip or spread.

Beans – you can also add beans to curries for additional protein or with a baked potato. You can make a delicious vegan spaghetti bolognese with kidney beans. Also you could make a tasty butter bean spread.

I was amazed to discover that there is a vegan restaurant in Crawley 5 minutes away from where I work! Loving Hut Express opened up in Southgate in Crawley a couple of weeks ago! They serve delicious Chinese style vegan food. I tried the vegan fish and chips which was delicious and tasted like real fish!

I will definitely be back again to try out more of the mouth watering meals on the menu such as the tasty chicken balls, dumplings and vegan burgers. It is like a piece of Brighton in Crawley. Thank you Loving Hut for opening up in Crawley!

They also have amazing water that is filtered through an 7 panel ionising filter. It filters out the harmful chemicals and minerals such as chlorine and fluorine, which can cause toxicity in the brain, and it allows minerals that are good for health such as magnesium, calcium, potassium and sodium to remain in the water. In Japan they call it medicinal water because it remineralises the body. It also has a pH of 8.6 which is alkaline so it alkalises the body which is also very good for health with the acidic diet we eat in the West.

The Crawley Vegan Society regularly meets up here to have high vibrational, loving chats. Come along an meet like minded vegan/vegetarian friends!

When on a vegan diet it is important to make sure you are getting all the nutrients that your body needs to function optimally. I have listed the 4 essential nutrients and supplements for vegans below. My recommendations are based on the knowledge I have learnt on my 3 year nutrition course. I want to share my knowledge with vegans so they can remain healthy on a vegan diet.

Vitamin B12 – is important for making red blood cells, energy and concentration. It is found only in animal products so it is vital that you take a vitamin B12 supplement. I recommend BetterYou B12 Boost Oral Spray. It is a sublingual spray that is absorbed under the tongue directly into the blood stream for faster action.

Omega 3 EPA & DHA – is important for brain health, building cell membranes and reducing inflammation in the body. The active form of omega 3 EPA and DHA is only found in fish and eggs. ALA is found in flaxseed, chia seeds, hemp seeds, rapeseed oil and walnuts. ALA is converted to EPA and DHA is the body but it is thought that only 5% is converted. I recommend taking Opti-3 Omega DHA & EPA supplement. The recommended amount of omega 3 for an adult is 2g per day.

Zinc – is involved in over 100 enzyme reactions in the body. It is also important for a healthy immune system, producing stomach acid to digest food, appetite and taste. Zinc is found mainly in animal products, especially seafood and also in fresh root ginger, cashew nuts and pumpkin seeds. I recommend all vegans take 15mg of zinc daily. A good supplement is Biocare Nutrisorb Zinc Plus Ascorbate with zinc in it’s most absorbable form. Also good is Biocare Zinc Citrate.

Vitamin D – most people in the northern hemisphere are deficient in vitamin D. Vitamin D functions like a hormone and is important for bone health and mood. You can get vitamin D from animal products and mushrooms. The easiest way to get vitamin D is from 20 minutes exposure to sunlight on bare face and arms daily. In the winter months it is recommended to supplement with vitamin D as your body stores are used up after 3 months, so last until December. A good, clean vegan supplement is Cytoplan Vitamin D3 2500IU made from lichen.

It is always best to get the nutrients you need from your diet if possible. Supplements ‘supplement’ your diet and are not a replacement for a healthy diet.

If you plan on going vegan it’s important that you have vegan alternatives to animal foods that you have been eating on a daily basis. Having tasty vegan alternatives helps to maintain the vegan diet in the long-term and reduces the temptation to go back to eating animal foods. I have compiled a list of my favourite vegan alternatives.

Meat – there are many high protein alternatives to meat. Mushrooms have a meaty texture, as well as tofu and beans. You can buy Linda Mccartney or Quorn burgers. Or you can make my tasty Quinoa and Lentil Burgers

Eggs – you can use flax eggs (1tbsp flaxseed mixed in 2tbsp cold water) as an egg replacement to bind cakes.

Mayonnaise – You can buy Plamil vegan soya mayonnaise or making your own Vegan Mayonnaise is quick and easy in a blender.

Milk – there are many dairy free milks available in the shops such as almond milk, oat milk, rice milk, hemp milk, coconut milk and soya milk. It is easy and rewarding to make your own homemade Almond Milk.

Cream – you make a simple Vegan Cashew Cream to serve with strawberries or spread on a sponge cake.

Butter – You can use soya spread to spread on your toast or you can use coconut oil, olive oil or rapeseed oil.

Cheese – cheese is often the hardest animal product for people who are going vegan to give up. Tasty cheese alternatives include VioLife dairy free cheese, Tofutti and Sheese.

Yoghurt – Co-yo have a delicious coconut yoghurt with live cultures or you can buy soya yoghurt.

Ice cream – my Banana & Cashew Ice cream recipe is easy to make with only two ingredients! Or you can buy ready made dairy free ice cream from Booja Booja, Co-yo, Tofutti or Swedish Glace.

As the days get colder, it is comforting to have hot, spicy meals to warm us up. Here are 10 warming Autumn recipes to do just that! My favourite meal at the moment is the delicious sweet potato and tomato casserole.

Today we went for a walk in the Jalon valley and saw wild orange trees, nut trees, purple grape trees and cacao bean trees! We have lemon trees in the garden at the villa so can pick wild lemons. It’s fantastic to go outside and pick your own fruit!

Later we drove to Orba to have lunch in Les Arcades. For tapas they had finely sliced, fried mushrooms seasoned in olive oil, garlic and parsley which were very tasty.

For starter I had the sopa de cebolla/onion soup which was tasty.

All the main meals contained meat, but we asked the waiter if they could prepare some vegetables. Later on he brought out a stunning dish of rainbow coloured vegetables with rice, mushrooms and patatas which was amazing!

Buenas dias! Today we went into Calpe to do some shopping. Unfortunately on the way back it poured with rain, so much so that we couldn’t cross the road to walk back to the car as the road had turned into a river! So we ran into the Spanish restaurant El Paseo to shelter from the rain and have lunch while we waited for the rain to stop.

The only vegan meal on the menu was Patatas Bravas! It is becoming one of my favourite meals! Crispy potatoes with spicy tomato salsa sauce! I will keep you updated with other vegan meals that I find in the restaurants!

Hi Everyone! Hope you are enjoying the summer! I’m off to sunny Spain tomorrow for a break and hopefully will be posting some Spanish-style vegan recipes! I will also be checking out the local restaurants and taking photos of any vegan meals I have! So look out for my vegan recipe posts! Hasta la vista!

Thank you so much to Jessica from veganrescue.com for nominating me for the Leibster Award! It is an honour to be nominated by Jessica who inspires so many people to try vegan food with her tasty vegan recipes! She also has an excellent vegan resources page!

I also want to announce that I have changed my blog name and web address to Kate’s Vegan Cooking as I am focusing more on vegan recipes. Please visit me at katesvegancooking.co.uk as I am fazing out cookingtohealme.com which will eventually be deleted.

Nominees please follow the rules below and spread the love by giving the Leibster award to 10 of your favourite bloggers!

What is your favourite comfort food? My favourite comfort food at the moment is my Vegan Thai Green Curry. It is so warming and tasty! I love the flavours of the coriander and basil and the green colour!

What is your dream job? My dream job is to be a famous singer.

What is your favourite way to unwind after a long week? My favourite way to unwind after working is to go for a relaxing walk in the woods! I love being in nature and seeing the beauty of the trees, plants and wildlife around me.

What inspired you to become a blogger? After using diet to recover from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome I wanted to use my experience to help other people suffering with ME/CFS.

If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go? I would go to Bali.

Do you have any hobbies (other than blogging)? Yes I love walking in nature, cooking, photography, yoga, meditation and writing.

What is your biggest fear? My biggest fear is that there will be an economic collapse in September 2015 that will leave me and my family and friends without access to food and that we will begin to starve.

What is the best advice you would give yourself 10 years ago? Brush off other people’s harsh comments.

How long have you been blogging? I have been blogging since 11th April 2014 when I woke up that morning and had the urge to start a blog.